Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, is a Hindu denomination within the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. It was formed by Yagnapurushdas on the principle that Swaminarayan was to remain present on earth through a lineage of gurus dating all the way back to Gunatitanand Swami – one of Swaminarayan's most prominent disciples. Based on the Akshar Purushottam doctrine, followers of BAPS believe Swaminarayan manifests through a lineage of Aksharbrahman Gurus, beginning with Gunatitanand Swami, followed by Bhagatji Maharaj, Shastriji Maharaj, Yogiji Maharaj, Pramukh Swami Maharaj, and presently Mahant Swami Maharaj. As of 2019, BAPS has 44 shikharbaddha mandirs and more than 1,200 mandirs worldwide that facilitate practice of this doctrine by allowing followers to offer devotion to the murtis of Swaminarayan, Gunatitanand Swami, and their successors. BAPS mandirs also feature activities to foster culture and youth development. Many devotees view the mandir as a place for transmission of Hindu values and their incorporation into daily routines, family life, and careers. BAPS also engages in a host of humanitarian and charitable endeavors through BAPS Charities, a separate non-profit aid organization which has spearheaded a number of projects around the world addressing healthcare, education, environmental causes, and community-building campaigns.
Pramukh Swami Maharaj was the guru and Pramukh, or president, of the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a major branch of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, a Hindu denomination. BAPS regards him as the fifth spiritual successor of Swaminarayan, following Gunatitanand Swami, Bhagatji Maharaj, Shastriji Maharaj, and Yogiji Maharaj. He was believed by his followers to be in constant communion with Swaminarayan, and ontologically, the manifestation of Akshar, the eternal abode of Swaminarayan.
Swaminarayan, also known as Sahajanand Swami, was a yogi and ascetic whose life and teachings brought a revival of central Hindu practices of dharma, ahimsa and brahmacarya. He is believed by followers to be a manifestation of God.
Yogiji Maharaj, born Jina Vasani, was a Hindu swami and the fourth spiritual successor of Swaminarayan in the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), a major branch of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. According to the metaphysics of BAPS, Yogiji Maharaj is considered to be the next iteration of Akshar after Shastriji Maharaj in the guru parampara, an unbroken line of "perfect devotees" who provide "authentication of office through Gunatitanand Swami and back to Swaminarayan himself." Together with Pramukh Swami Maharaj, who acted as the administrative head of BAPS, he was instrumental in nurturing the growth of BAPS "through new programs, expansion into new areas, and the construction of temples". As guru, he consecrated over 60 temples and visited over 4000 towns and villages. He was particularly effective in attracting the devotion of youths and initiated a large number of them as ascetics. Furthermore, his multiple tours to Britain and East Africa were integral in the overseas expansion of BAPS. He died on 23 January 1971 after appointing Pramukh Swami Maharaj as his successor.
The Laxminarayan Dev Gadi is one of the two gadis (diocese) that together form the Swaminarayan Sampraday. It is headquartered at the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Vadtal and controls the Dakshin Vibhag Lekh.
Gunatitanand Swami, born Mulji Jani, was a prominent paramhansa of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya who was ordained by Swaminarayan and is accepted as the first spiritual successor of Swaminarayan by the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS). Born into a religious family in the small farming community of Bhadra in Gujarat, India, he first received religious education under his father's guru, Ramanand Swami before encountering Swaminarayan and becoming a swami under him at the age of 25. He was revered for his spiritual discourses and divine service
Nishkulanand Swami (1766–1848) was a Swaminarayan's paramhans and swami of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya.
Brahmanand Swami was revered as a saint of the Swaminarayan Sampraday and as one of Swaminarayan's Paramahamsa. In the scriptures of the Swaminarayan Sampraday it was noted that Brahmanand Swami as stated by Swaminarayan that as the name suggests and implies "Brahmanand" is an Avatar of Brahma.
The Vachanamrut is a sacred Hindu text consisting of 273 religious discourses delivered by Swaminarayan from 1819 to 1829 CE and is considered the principal theological text within the Swaminarayan Sampradaya. Compiled by four of his senior disciples, Swaminarayan edited and approved the scripture. As followers believe Swaminarayan to be Parabrahman, or God, the Vachanamrut is considered a direct revelation from God and thus the most precise interpretation of the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and other important Hindu scriptures. In the Vachanamrut, Swaminarayan outlines the Akshar-Purushottam Darshan and the necessity of the Aksharbrahman Guru to attain moksha, a spiritual state characterised by eternal bliss and devotion to God. This scripture is read by followers regularly and discourses are conducted daily in Swaminarayan temples around the world.
Shastriji Maharaj, born Dungar Patel and ordained Shastri Yagnapurushdas, was a swami of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya and founder of the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS). Several branches accept him as the third spiritual successor of Swaminarayan in the lineage of Aksharbrahma Gurus through whom Swaminarayan manifests, which began with Gunatitanand Swami. Born in a family of farmers in central Gujarat, India, he became a swami within the Vadtal diocese of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya at the age of 17 where he was given the name Yagnapurushdas Swami. The prefix Shastri was later added in recognition of his eminent scholarship in Sanskrit and the Hindu scriptures. He established BAPS after a doctrinal split from the Vadtal diocese of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya.
Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Junagadh is a Hindu temple in Junagadh, Gujarat, India. This temple was ordered to be built by Lord Swaminarayan himself, the founder of the Swaminarayan Sampraday.
Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Dholera is a Hindu temple in Dholera, Gujarat, India, and is one of six Shri Swaminarayan Temples built by Swaminarayan.
A shikharbaddha mandir is a traditional Hindu or Jain place of worship, typically featuring architecture characterized by superstructures with towers pinnacles and domes and often built of carved marble, sandstone, or other stone. While such mandirs are common in many branches of Hinduism, the use of the term shikharbaddha mandir to describe such mandirs is most common in the Swaminarayan branch of Hinduism as well as Jainism. The opposite of the shikharbaddha temple is one without a shikhara tower, i.e. with a flat roof.
The Naranarāyan Dēv Gadī, named after NarNarayan Dev, is one of the two Gadis (seats) that together form the Swaminarayan Sampraday. Its headquarter is at the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Ahmedabad and controls the Uttar Vibhag.
The Swaminarayan Sampradaya is a Hindu sampradaya which was founded in 1801 by Sahajanand Swami, who is worshipped as Swaminarayan, the supreme manifestation of God, by his followers. Under Swaminarayan’s leadership the sampradaya grew to more than 100,000 followers and 3,000 swamis (monks) by the time of his death in 1830.
The Swaminarayan Mantra, a spiritual-focused mantra, was introduced and explained by Sahajand Swami, spiritual head of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, shortly after the death of his predecessor, Ramanand Swami. He explained that the Swaminarayan mantra is a compound of two words: Swami and Narayan. Swami denotes Akshar incarnate, God's ideal devotee, whom Sahajanand Swami identified as Gunatitanand Swami, one of his ordained swamis and ‘Narayan' denotes Purushottam, or God, understood to be Sahajanand Swami himself. Composed of these two words, the mantra encapsulates the central principle of Sahajanand Swami’s theological teachings of five eternal and distinct entities. Devotees chant the Swaminarayan mantra to offer worship, to allay distress, to pray for the welfare of others, and at the end-of-life. Several scriptures of the Swaminarayan Sampradaya, such as the Swamini Vato, Harililamrut, and Bhaktachintamani, describe the power and efficacy of the Swaminarayan mantra for one who chants it.
The Swamini Vato is a set of quotations and sayings of Gunatitanand Swami. It is a scripture in the Swaminarayan denomination of the Hindu religion. It was documented in the mid 19th century over the course of Gunatitanand Swami's 40 year tenure as the Mahant of Junagadh Mandir.
The Akshar Deri is a major site of pilgrimage in the Swaminarayan Sampradaya and is located in the rang mandap of the BAPS Swaminarayan temple in Gondal, India. The structure marks the cremation site and serves as a memorial to Gunatitanand Swami. An event was held to commemorate 150 years of the structure in Gondal, the structure as well as the site was renovated to bring it to modern standards.
Bhadreshdas Swami is a Sanskrit scholar and an ordained monk of the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS). In 2017 he completed the Swaminarayan Bhashyam, a five-volume classical Sanskrit commentary on the Prasthanatrayi. This commentary on Hinduism's three canonical texts: the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and the Brahma sutras, forms the interpretive foundation of the philosophy of Akshar Purushottam darshana, also known as Swaminarayan darshana, illuminating the Vedic roots of the Akshar Purushottama philosophy, which was propagated by the 19th-century Hindu leader, Swaminarayan and later by Shastriji Maharaj.
Akshar-Purushottam Darshan (Akṣara-Puruṣottama Darśanaor Akṣara-Puruṣottama Upāsanā) is the set of spiritual beliefs based on the teachings of Swaminarayan. Due to the commentarial work of Bhadreshdas Swami, Swaminarayan's teachings were recognized as a separate school of Vedanta by the Shri Kashi Vidvat Parishad in 2017 and by members of the 17th World Sanskrit Conference in 2018.
